We had a great time in Budapest. As we normally do, we looked for ways to make the most of our time without spending a lot of money. So we didn’t pay to go in a lot of places (only the cave church, and it was a nominal fee). But you can see and do a lot for free!I thought I would share some of our favorites from our time there (in no particular order).
- Castle Hill – we explored the area twice, once in the daylight, and another time as the sun was setting. Our walk down the winding paths at sunset was especially enjoyable, with so many spots to stop for a great view of the city and the Danube.
- Matthias Church – we only saw it from the outside but it was beautiful.
- Bridges (the bridges across the Danube between Buda and Pest) – we walked across Margaret Bridge, Chain Bridge and Liberty bridge. The best was walking Chain Bridge at night.
- St. Stephens Basilica – only saw it from the outside but it was pretty and there was a nice Christmas market just outside.
- Mexican restaurants – our favorite kind of food, and we have no Mexican restaurants in Norway. We enjoyed the food at Iguana. But we kept finding ourselves going back to Arriba Taqueria (similar to Moe’s or Chipotle).
- Central Market Hall busy, crowded, and lots of interesting smells! But a great place to purchase souvenirs, including paprika and goose liver pate. And be sure to stop at Fakanal for goulash (we tried the stew and the soup).
- The Gellért Cave Church – heated by the thermal springs in Gellért Hill
- Memento Park – a ‘statue graveyard’ of Communist monuments
- Váci utca- a great pedestrian street with shopping, restaurants, and so much to see
- City Park and Heroes’ Square – a large park that is home to a circus, zoo, ice skating arena, thermal bath, and a Transylvanian castle. And Heroes Square reminded me a little bit of Independence Square in Kyiv (Ukraine).